Home Studio Time

Working on the worktable. Your table will always be messy—don’t worry about it.

I’ve been trying to figure out how best to spend my summer in terms of producing work. At first, it was a list of things I wanted to get done: a book, edit all the images for another book, complete a series of photographs I’ve been working on that require installations, and continue working on other sculptural and performative works. Believe it or not, I’ve made headway on all of them.I rented a projector from school, and that’s come in handy for the series of photographs I’m working on. Having summer access is KEY. I don’t know how many other folks are utilizing the labs, but it’s making a world of a difference for me.

Miniature installation thinking about the divine, and contemporary restructurings of the sacred in relationship with popular culture’s relationship to the metaphysical, most notably “new age” philosophies.

This summer, I’ve realized the benefit that structured time and microdeadlines can have on productivity. Having a day wide open to “do things in the studio” means I will spend most of my time somewhat stricken with the anxiety of having so many things to finish. Enter my side job: washing dishes. The simple act of washing dishes is like having a five-hour meditation session every day. I can listen to my podcasts on astrology and learn about the upcoming transits or historical systems of house division. Most importantly, I have the opportunity to concentrate.

I recommend living inside your studio to a) save money b) be surrounded by your work all the time c) decrease the distance between your sleeping self and your making self.

Structuring my time has been extremely beneficial to me this summer. Other routines that I’ve picked up: Ashtanga yoga, specifically because it is the same series of poses forever, with no real deviation. You just go deeper and deeper into the practice, which is a concept that makes a lot of sense for my artistic practice too. I’ve started making bread once a week. I’ve started making my bed before I leave home.All of these little things are somehow coalescing into what has been the most profoundly abundant summer EVER. I suppose if I can impart any wisdom to someone reading this, it’s that if you feel like you aren’t getting much done try making your bed EVERY morning, with absolutely no exception. If you forget, you come home and you make yourself do it. I swear, that simple act alone is like breaking

All of these little things are somehow coalescing into what has been the most abundant summer ever. I suppose if I can impart any wisdom to someone reading this, it’s that if you feel like you aren’t getting much done, try making your bed every morning—no exceptions. If you forget, come home and make yourself do it. I swear, that simple act alone can make all the difference.

The milk crate is utilitarian. Five sides of modular fun. For everyone.

On top of all of this, at the new moon on July 4th I decided that I am going to stop drinking alcohol for the duration of one moon cycle (roughly 28–29 days). If the party sucks, and if you can’t hear anyone at the bar, just go home, get into your nicely made bed, and go to sleep. Then get up the next morning and check everything off that list.

xo

whit

If you can’t organize your stuff because you don’t know how, I recommend just picking one thing. Like height. Organize everything in a pile by height on a wall. It’s extremely useful to just have at least one parameter so you can place things in some kind of scheme.